Sorry to Dig up an old post but for everyone who has mounted their CTEK to the BUSBARs in the trunk how do you get the cable out of the car to the power supply. Lastly the great link posted by Dwight above is for a MY 2016. I heard things slightly changed for my MY which is 2019. Has anyone done the trunk install on a 2019.

Is it neccesary to disconnect the battery before installing the CTEK onto the BUSBAR and Ground. Should the car be in a locked or unlocked state?

Thanks in advance for any additional insight into this install.

 

I didn't disconnect the battery when I fitted my connector - first connected the positive and then held down the earth side while I removed the nut and fitted the black wire. No sparks or anything!

Regarding getting power in, I charge mine outside so put the charger and the socket end of an extension cable in the trunk, then trail the mains cable out and trap it under the lid. Just make sure to avoid the latch! No issues so far (since 2018!). I leave the car locked, usually overnight to get a full charge in.

 

If you connect it to the charging posts in the engine bay, you can easily thread the cable down through the wheel well and close the hood while charging.

 

This skips the BSM module though to which I understand should be included.

Much easier this way but once again I dont want to impact the electronics in any way

 

I have run my CTek that way for 3 years - no problem.
I know some others on this forum do the same, and I think dealers typically connect to the same charging points in their show rooms.

 

Thank you CJS For your input

 

Connecting a CTEK to the 'jump start' posts under the bonnet DOES NOT skip the Battery Monitor. See my post #9 for a full technical description of where you can connect a CTEK (or any other charger/maintainer).

 

Thanks GenP for further clarification. Why would anyone go through the trouble of wiring it into the BUSBAR in the Boot then, Seems like much more trouble than its worth. If I'm reading your post correctly it should either go into the Busbar and grounding strap in the boot or on the jump points under the hood.

 

CJSJAG did you use the alligator clips or create some type of wiring harness on the positive charge point.

 

If you want to use alligator clips, then under the hood is definitely the way to go. However, if you want to use the hardwired pigtails for the leads permanently affixed to the connections, it's easier to do in the boot, as the charge points under the hood are really meant for alligator-style clips. Also, it's much easier to open and close the boot regularly than it is to open (and especially close) the hood because of how you need to close it. Plus, the cable easily comes out from under the boot lid above the taillights--especially on the convertible--so it's easy to connect it and close the boot lid without concern of pinching the wire while it's closed and locked.

 

There are many acceptable ways to connect a charger, some people prefer the boot (distribution box/busbar) as they can fit a CTEK 'comfort panel' in the boot liner trim, or simply they reverse the car into the garage and a rear charge cable suits the location of mains socket. Others I've seen have fitted a CTEK extension and mounted it in the mesh of the front grille. In this case the + connection was tapped into the battery feed of the front right fuse box (where the starter relays and + jump terminal are housed). You can unbolt the fusebox and dissassemble to gain access (after isolating battery of course!). The earth was then connected to a suitable chassis bolt (can't remember exactly where). This grille connector method was preferred for cars where the car was driven into the garage and once again suited the location of mains socket.

In both these front and rear examples, the CTEK connector was used to connect to the car electrical system. This is a much safer connection method as the risk with the under bonnet jump terminals is that you have to use crocodile clips on odd shaped terminals (earth being a thin round post, positive being a thin metal 'wave'). There is very little clearance under the bonnet (hood) once lowered and if you drop the bonnet after connecting the clips, there is a risk you could dislodge the clips and short out the charger. Worst case scenario the clips gradually weaken and drop off while the car is unattended.

It is for this reason the most common (and safest) connection method is to use the boot distribution box and battery earth cable as they are relatively easy to access in order to fit the CTEK connector cable, but as per my post, ANY battery positive supply line and ANY clean earth/grounding point on the car can be used to connect your CTEK. The ONLY method that you should not use is to connect directly accross the battery terminals, as this will remove the BM from the charging circuit and disrupt the battery condition monitoring.

 

The simple answer to the cable question is as stated above: in addition to the CTEK unit itself, you buy the CTEK “comfort extension” ; the CTEK is connected to the battery management bar in the trunk (+) and to any stud on the trunk floor (-). No need to disconnect the battery to do this. The comfort extension easily reaches outside the trunk and it is narrow enough not to cause any issues with the weatherstripping. This extension permits the CTEK unit itself to be outside the car and connected to the main power source.

Connecting and disconnecting the CTEK then is simply a 3 second task. And your battery is fully charged always.

 

I hard wired that end of the CTek harness to the car. That end stays connected.
I connect and disconnect the CTek charger using the quick disconnect fitting.

The negative CTek wire is bolted onto a nearby threaded stud.
The positive wire is connected to the charging spade terminal under the red cover.
I drilled a small diameter hole in the spade in order to bolt the positive CTek lead to the spade.

If you decide to do the same, place a cloth around the spade before drilling, to capture the copper swarf.

Here are some photos that may help.

 

I used the ring connectors and then left that short section of the connection in the battery area.
When I want to condition/charge, I pass the remainder of the wiring past the floor panel and out the trunk/ boot lid. On my2017, the rubber gasket/weatherstrip is pliable enough to accommodate the wire out and allow the hatch to close. The weatherstrip does not appear to be adversely affected after being closed with the CTek wire in place. I put the CTek unit on a small board and plug it in the wall socket.

 

Once again thanks everyone for the feedback. I'm diving back into the quote/unquote collector/show car thing again now that my kids are older. My previous show car had a great community and forum and everyone was helpful. Hopefully the Jag community is the same and if this post shows anything it is a good sign.

 

My CTEK unit connects to the busbar and ground point under the storage compartment in the trunk. I did buy one of the Comfort Extensions that has the LED's to indicate status. What I did to tidy up the installation is use a spade bit, I think it was 7/8" wide to bore a hole in the left rear bottom of the storage bin. (Don't do that with the bin in place in the trunk !)
That allows for the connector and wire to feed up and through the bin and stick out a couple of inches when the cover for the bin is pushed forward an inch or so. When I want to put the car on the charger, I simply slide the bin cover forward a little, reach in and pull the connector out and then attach the wire from the CTEK unit. No issues closing the hatch on the wire as long as you are careful to keep the wire away from the latching mechanism.

 

I have been having trouble trying to understand why the connection issue (both the how and the where) has been so complicated. For the last 6 or 7 years my F-Type has (when not being driven) rested with its CTEK unit connected (as correctly described) with the + cable attached to the battery management bar and the - cable to the stud on the floor of the trunk, very near the bar. Installing the CTEK wiring took not more than 10 minutes, working carefully, drilling NOTHING, disconnecting NOTHING. Since then (years ago) this part of the trunk has not even been visited!

During the original less-than-10-minute installation, the circlip wiring was attached to the bar and the floor stud and then to the CTEK "comfort extension". I then refitted the trunk floor panels (26 seconds...) and extended the comfort extension to the edge of the trunk opening, leaving the connector just outside (2 seconds). THIS ARRANGEMENT HAS NOT BEEN TOUCHED SINCE THEN. In other words, zero expenditure of time or effort since installation.

On a regular basis, the use of the car requires unclipping the CTEK unit (which sits on the wall of the garage for easy viewing) from the the connector at the exterior edge of the trunk. This takes 1 second. On returning the car to the garage I reconnect (another 1 second). As a point of information the connector has a rubber cover which protects it from the elements so the fact that it sits outside the trunk edge is irrelevant in that sense. Let me recap: since installation of the CTEK ring connectors, which required nothing more than a small spanner and 10 minutes MAX, and required no alteration of the car, no drilling, no additional screws, bolts or washers, no danger whatsoever of affecting the electronics, no danger whatsoever of alligator clips coming loose.....since the original installation, the connections have not needed to be accessed, just the 1 second disconnecting and 1 second connecting. The trunk never needs to be opened to connect or disconnect the CTEK unit. I struggle to think of why anyone would want to complicate this? But life is full of mysteries. Perhaps some would consider the connector itself to be visually obtrusive. It doesn't bother me at all because it is barely noticeable.

The CTEK connector with its cap in place - the positioning of the connector has not been altered since installation:


The CTEK unit now connected and in operation:

 

Gregory: I understand that works for you but most people do not want their pigtail hanging out the *** end of the car!!
Specifically, in my case, I connect at the head end because it is closer to the wall outlet and avoids the need for an extension cord.

 

CJSJAG: I can understand that some might not want the connector visible at the exterior edge of the trunk. Even so, assuming the connector is left inside the trunk, opening and closing the trunk is the only action required. But my car has the electric opening trunk and I just prefer not to use this assist unnecessarily. (How many open/close cycles are built into this unit?) and that is why the connector is left outside - but it also permit disconnecting and connecting to be effortless and immediate.

And I do understand that if the installation I describe required fiddling with a household extension cord, that might be a nuisance. As you can see from my second photo I do not need an extension cord.

 

Once again thank you everyone for the excellent feedback. I think I have enough info here to make an informed decision and move forward once my CTEK unit arrives. Now I just need amazon to get their *** in gear.